Pneumatic-tube system.



PATENTED JAN. 8, 1907.

- B. G. BATGHELLER.

PNEUMATIC TUBE SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1. 1905.

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No. 840,464. v PATENTED JAN. 8, 1907.

B. G. BATGHELLER.

PNEUMATIC TUBE SYSTEM.

APPLIOATION FILED MAY 1, 1905.

N 6 SHEETS-SHBET 2.

WITNESSES 7M xi; ATTORNEY.

PATENTED JAN. 8, 1907.

B. G. BATOHELLBR. PNEUMATIC TUBE SYSTEM.

APPLIGATION FILED MAY 1,1905.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

f G INYENTUR a Q r j Br 4 %QQ 4f; ATTORNEY.

No. 840,464. PATENTED JAN. 8, 1907.

B. C. BATOHELLER.

PNEUMATIC TUBE SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1.1905.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

Q i 5 .N I N N P 7 I O4 WI E8858. 0 "IVE/ TUB 93 g ATTORNEY.

PATENTED JAN. 8, 1907.

B. G. BATCHELLBR. PNEUMATIC TUBE SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1,1905.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

1. ATTORNEY.

BIRNEYC. BATOHELLER, OF

TO THE PEARSALL PNEUMATIC TUBE AND PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, 'ASSIGNORPOWER COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

PNEUMATIC-TUBE SYSTEM.

Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed lay 1. 1905. SerialNo. 258,288.

Patented Jan. 8, 1907.

To all whom. it may cancerm Be it known that I, BIRNEY O. BATCHEL- LER,a citizen of the United States of America, residingrin the city andcounty of Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania, have invented'acertain new and useful Improvement in Pneumatic-Tube Systems, of whichthe following is a true and exact description, reference bein had to theaccompanying drawings, which form a part thereof.

, My invention relates to pneumatic -tube systems of the kind known asvacuum systion of the system and terns, and has for its object toprovide for the flow of air through the tube to the vacuum pi e orreservoir and the tube system only wl ien a carrier is inserted and intransit by means which are set in o eration at each stathe use ofappliances which will insure t e maintenance of the vacuum connectionfor a determined time after the insertion of each carrier at any stationof the s stem. r

A further ob ect of my invention is to provide means whereby theoperative connection of the tube and vacuum-pipe is necessarily madebefore a carrier is committedto the tube.

My invention is in the nature of an improvement on the general systemshown and described in my application for Letters Patent filed March 11,1905, Serial No. 249,569., and in its employment of time-escapementsoperated from each station of the line it is intended to include anddominate, as a broader patent, my other application for Letters Patent,filed March 21, 1905, Serial No. 251,208, which application is concernedparticularly with the utilization of electromagnetic mechanism foractuating the air-valve.

The nature of my improvements will be best understood as described inconnection with the drawings in which they are illustrated, and in whichFigure 1 is adiagrammatic-elevation of a system provided with myimprovements and in whic an electroma at and circuit-wires reachingthrough the different stations of the system is employed as a means foractuating t e air-valve, as is also the case with my lastmentionedapplication, Serial No. 251,208. Fig. 1 is a sectional view of theair-valve mechanism of Fi 1. Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of one of theintermediate station devices of 1, showing the circuit-breaker andair-valve K and by spring K time-esca ement in section on the line 2 2,of Fig. 4. ig. 3 is a front view of the same appliances Fig. 4, a sideelevation of the same appliances with the circuit-breaking and.time-escapement devices shown in section on the line 4 4 of Fig. 2. Fig.5 is a diagrammatic side elevation showing my system as a plied to aline having two stations and in .w 'ch a vacuum-pipe connecting thestations is utilized for actuating the air-valve in place of an electriccircuit and electromagnet connected therewith; andFig. 6 is a sectionalelevation of the time-escapement devices indicated in Fig. 5, taken onthe section-line 6 6 of Fig. 5. Fig. 7 is a view illustrating anothermodification of my system and Fig. 8 is a side elevation, partially insection, of the time-escapement and connected appliances shown at theright side of Fig. 7.

A, Fig. 1, indicates the terminal station; A and A intermediate stationson a 100 line, Eneumatic tubes being indicated at B and 2 B beinga.terminal section of the tube at the terminal station, while Bindicates the vacuum-pipe connecting through a regulatingvalve chamber(indicated at B) with a pipe-section B leading to a reservoir F. I

0 indicates the open end of the tube through which carriers are insertedat the terminal station, while at each intermediate station I haveindicated at D D station appliances similar to those described in thepatent to Stuart, No. 713,924, of November 18,

1902, selective carriers issuing through the gates D, while thoseintended for stations in advance pass through the sections D to the nextsucceeding station. Each station appliance also has a gate, as indicatedat D for the insertion of carriers.

- At E, I have indicated a grid, connecting the ends of thetube-sections B and B the end of the section B being closed by aflapvalve, as indicated at E, and connected through lateral openings tothe chamber E. At E", I have shown a receiving-chamber at the end of thepipe B The chamber E (see Fig. 1) is connected with the upper end of 100the vacuum-tube B" and is formed with a diaphragm-chamber at its top,having a lateral port, as indicated at E. The diaphragm K is connectedby rod K with the justing-screw K supported on arms K with the ad- 10 5The vacuum-chamber F is connected by a pipe F with a chamber P in thecasing P, said chamber opening to the atmosphere through a passage P andthrough a pipe F and port E to the diaphragm-chamber E The ports P andat the top of pipe F, are

controlled by a valve P in the chamber P, and an electromagnet P,actuating said valve, the said electromagnet being connected bycircuit-wires G with the battery and the, said circuit-wires connectingthrough each station of the system and having circuit opening andclosing devices at each station. This appliance is similar to theelectromag netic mechanism described in my former application, SerialNo. 251,208.

At each station the wire G connects with spring-terminals, as indicatedat G G2 in Fig. 4, electric connection being made by a metallic plate I,which plate is connected by a piston-rod I with a piston 1*, working ina cylinder J 5 and pressed down toward the bottom of the cylinder by aspring L. J is a port opening into the bottom of the cylinder at J andagain, at a higher point, opening into the cylinder at J this port beingclose by a non-return valve J. The port J also connects with the upperpassageJ, leading to the cylinder J, being a needle-valve for re ulatingthe size of the port J".

n the intermediate stations the circuitclosing plate I is actuated by achain I, passing over a chain-wheel I and connected with the elbow H. ofcrooked lever H, pivoted at H on the hinge-pin of the gate D which gatehas a projecting finger H in position to be engaged by the lever H afterit is pressed down and after it has actuated the closingplate I to openthe circuit. Practically the same arrangement is rovided at the terminalstation A except t at the chain I is actuated by a hand-lever H notdirectly connected with any gate-opening device. By preference, thelever H is provided with an arm or gate H, which closes the tube-mouth 0against the insertion of a carrier when the lever is in normal positionand opens it when the lever is actuated to open the circuit and set thetime-escapement.

In the modified construction shown in Figs. 5 and 6 the port E isdirectly connected through tube F with a pi e F connecting through avalve-chamber with the vacuum-pipe F, the valve-chamber being providedwith a needle-regulating valve F as indicated. A continuation of thepipe F (indicated at M) leads to the succeeding station or stations,Where it is connected (see Fig. 6) with a port N leading into a chamberN in a casing N, having also a port N 2 opening to the atmosphere. Belowthe casing N, in which the chamber N is formed, is secured the cylinder0, having a conduit 0 connecting with port 0 at the lower end of thecylinder and provided with the valve-box having a needle-valve workingin it, as indicated at 0, said valve box or chamber connecting with theport 0 in the cylinder 0. Q is a valve normally seated on the port N andconnecting through a piston-rod P with a piston P, working in thecylinder O, said piston being formed with openings P, which during thedownward motion of the piston are closed by the annular valve P saidvalve 0 ening when the piston moves u ward.

e valve and piston are connected t ough a connecting-rod R with thebell-crank lever R R the arm B being preferably provided with a fingeror gate R which extends through an opening in the side of the pneu-.matic tube below the opening S therein, so as to support a carrier, asindicated at T, until the lever is moved to open the valve Q and draw upthe piston P. v

In the modification illustrated in Figs. 7

and 8 the vacuum-pipe B is in permanent connection with the tube B asindicated at U, and the air-valve which regulates the flow of airthrough the tube system is shown at V working just inside the mouth C ofthe sending-tube B at the same station. The valve V is connected by arod V with a piston V, moving in a cylinder V, a spring V acting tonormally keep the valve closed.

The air-pipe F connects directly with the right-hand end of the cylinderV and through branch pipe F, regulatin -valve F and pipe connections Fand F wit the left-hand side of cylinder V. The pipe-section F alsoconnects through pipe-sections F and M with a valve-casing N, generallysimilar to that shown in Fig. 6 and shown in Fig. 8, and also through abranch pipe M with a similar oasing and time-escapement O, which, asshown,

is rovided with a treadle W for actuating it.

he operation of the electromagnetic mechanism is easily followed. Theoperator inserting a carrier draws up by the lever H or H thecircuit-closin plate I and the attached piston I. The breaking of thecircuit denergizes the electromagnet P, permitting the valve P to fall,opening port P and closing pipe F. Air is thus admitted to the diahragm-chamber E whereupon the s ring 3 draws up the diaphragm and openst e valve K, placing the tube in communication with the vacuum-pipe, theinrushing air carrying the cylindrical carrier to the next succeedingstation or stations. As soon as the operator has released thestarting-lever the spring L begins the work of returning the Y tion iscut ofl and the vacuum restored in the diaphragm-chamber E, sucking downthe diaphragm, this action, to ether with the suction of the ipe B, recethe valve K and cutting oii t e vacuum connection.

In the special lans of Figs. 5 and 6 the of the va ve Q permits theentrance 0 air t ough the casing N to the p'pe M and to thevacuum-chamber E wit recisely the same results as already described.Here also the return of the valve to seated position isregulated by thetime-escapement cylinder 0 in practically the same way as that alreadydescribed, and it will be seen that as soon as the valve Q is returnedto itsseat the pi e M will be exhausted by its connection wit the pipeF. The needle-valve casing F is pro-' vided to restrict the flow to thevacuumpipe, so that when the valve Q is open the pipe M remain full ofair at atmospheric pressure, while on the closing of valve Q thepipelwill be exhausted with suificient rapidity. the modification of F 7the tube B is in constant communication with a vacuumchamber F, as isalso the tube B, through the station-head (indicated at D) at stationmarked A, the flow of air through the system being prevented by thenormally closed gate-valve (indicated at V) situated at the month of thepipe B in station A. When it is desired to insert a carrier at thestation A,

' the operator presses down the treadle W,

opening'the valve Q connected therewith,

and setting the time-escapement. at atmospheric ressure then enters thecasing N and through the pipe connections M F F .to the left-hand sideof the cylinder V, the righthand side of said cylinder being in freecommunication with the vacuum-chamber F through the i e F. The piston Bthen moves toward the light, opemn the ate'V and the carrier is insertedat an passes through the pipe B and head D, issuing through the gate DThe time-escapement operated by the treadle W then closes the valve Qandnormal vacuum is restored to the left-hand side of the cylinderVbythe exhaustion of the air through the pipes F F valvebox F, and pipe theipe F.

en a carrier'is inserted at the station A, the local valve Q andconnected time-escapement is opened and set in o eration by the an larlever H, the gate-Va ve D being opene onlyaftertheair-valveisopened. Theatmos heric air then passes through the pipes connecting with M F 8 tothe left-hand side of the cyhnder V, with the same result as alreadydescribedfor the operation of the similar parts at the station A.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a neumatic-tube s stem, the combination 0? a pneumatic tu e, twoor more stations thereon, a vacuum-pipe connected to said tube, anormally closed air-valve for controlling the flow of air through thetube, means for opening said valve, means for setting .the valve-openingmechanism in operation situated at each station, and a time-escapementdevice also situated at each station and connected with the local devicefor actuating the valve-o crating mechanism whereby said local vave-opening mechanism is maintained in position to kee the air-valve openfor a-determinedtime a er it is set in operation from the station whensaid local device is actuated.

2. In a pneumatic-tube system, the combination or a pneumatic tube, twoor more stations thereon, a vacuum-pipe connected to said tube, anormally closed air-valve for controlling the flow of air through thetube, means for opening said valve, a conduit extending from thevalve-opening mechanism to each stationi means, consisting of a deviceated by the initial movement for opening and closing the conduitwherebiyl the local devices for opening and closing t e conduit arereturned to normal position after a determined interval.

3. In a pneumatic-tube system the combination of a pneumatic tube, avacuum pipe or chamber connected therewith and a nor,- mally closedair-valve controlling said conncctlon, with means for actuating saidvalve,

havmg connection to the vacuum-pi e and to the atmosphere, a valve forcontro g said connection to the atmosphere normally held in and returnedto'one position by resilient means, means for moving said valve fromnor- -mal position, and a time-esca ement connected to said valve andwhere its return to normal position is retarded or a determined period,

4. In a neumatic-tube s stem,-the combination o a pneumatic tu e, two ormore stations thereon, a vacuum-pipe connected to said tube, a normallyclosed air-valve for controllingthe flow of air through the tube,

' means for opening said valve, means for setting thevalve-openingmechanism in operation situated at each station, movablebarriers for 1preventing the insertion of the carriers in t e tube ateach station said barriers being connected to and actuated by the localmeans for setting the valve-opening mechanism in operation so as topermit of the insertion of a carrier only after the valveactuatingmechanism is set in operation.

BIRNEY C. BATCHELLER.

